True Confessions of a Toy Dog-Owning Man T. Jefferson Parker, T. Jefferson Parker is a novelist and writer who lives in Orange County. His column appears in OC Live! the first three Thursdays of every month.

PLATFORM : Disaster Pornography From Somalia RAKIYA OMAAR, a Somali, was dismissed last week as executive director of Africa Watch after publicly dissenting from the position of the parent organization, Human Rights Watch, which endorsed U.S. military intervention in her homeland. Her deputy, ALEX de WAAL, resigned in protest to her dismissal. OMAAR and De WAAL told The Times:

PLATFORM : Gays in the Military CHRIS HAMILTON, 45, of Long Beach, who served in Vietnam on the aircraft carrier Constellation from 1969-1971, commented on gays in the military and whether it would be appropriate to make their identity known to heterosexual personnel. He told The Times: